On Tour with Keith Pedro & Friends | Filipino Comedy's Rising Stars Light Up the Stage
Filipino talent is breaking barriers in entertainment, and it's about time! After years of grinding behind the scenes, we're finally seeing more Filipino faces in the spotlight—especially in comedy. From TikTok to Netflix, Filipino comedians are stepping up, joining the likes of Jo Koy and Joey Guila to make their mark.
Now, Filipino humor isn’t just for us—it’s front and center for the world to see!
Meet Keith Pedro, a Filipino-Canadian comedian, actor, and producer who's been making serious moves. With a JUNO Award nomination, appearances on Russell Peters' Roast Battle Canada, and a feature on Kevin Hart’s Laughing Out Loud network, Pedro’s 17-year career is packed with epic achievements, and he’s just getting started!
He’s been out and about, currently touring and performing throughout North America. Some of you may already have had the opportunity to catch his show, which is slated to go until the end of November 2024. If you haven’t had the chance to see him or if you don’t know who he is, read on as we had the opportunity to sit with Keith Pedro and some of his fellow comedians joining him on tour along the way.
1. Tell us about yourself, Keith.
Keith Pedro: My name is Keith Pedro aka Manny Stacquiao, aka Dank Sinatra, aka Dat Trillipino, aka Hugo Bastos. I was born and raised in Canada. I'm a full-time, headlining comedian. I'm currently on a 26 city (and growing) North American tour.
2. How did you get into comedy?
Keith Pedro: I have always been funny and people were constantly telling me to do comedy. I wasn't sure what I wanted to do for post-secondary school and I was going through a lot of personal stuff. I had a run in with the law and I just kept getting in trouble. My mom kept telling me that I could do better, and she encouraged me to do something with my life.
At just 20 years old, I found a two-year college program that taught stand-up comedy, and how to write scripts and skits. The program started with 80 people and when the first semester was done, we were down to 30 people. When graduation came along, we were down to 18. Only four of us are still practicing what we studied. It’s not an easy program. It's run by the people who do The Second City, which is an improv sketch comedy and theater. Some famous people that graduated from The Second City include Tina Fey, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Will Ferrell, Chris Farley, Mike Myers, Steve Carell, Stephen Colbert and folks of that nature.
I finished at 22 years old, but to be honest, I only enrolled in the program because I have a Filipino mom! So these dreams are just dreams, right? My mom kept telling me to get a good job and kept pumping the importance of pension and health benefits. I didn’t know what I was going to do, and I thought that I could possibly go into advertising because one of the script writers in the program, Allan Guttman, was my teacher. He also mentored Mike Myers who's known for his work with Wayne’s World and Austin Powers.
During my last year of school, I got my girl pregnant. I got really worried about what I was going to do with myself. I talked to Allan Guttman, and he assured me that everything's going to work out because of my talent. He thought that I was funny, and told me that if school doesn’t work out, I could write jingles and funny skits as an advertiser. This program led to so many different opportunities, not just comedy.
Eventually, I started doing stand up and I started hitting the scene. Bookers, promoters and managers kept reaching out to me to come back the next day and the next week. So, I just kept going.
3. Have you been doing comedy full-time since you got out of school?
Keith Pedro: No, I wish that was the case! That would have been an amazing dream. I worked several jobs. I worked at the same hospital where my mom and all my titas worked. I worked in the kitchen, and I dropped off food to the different floors. That was fun, but I moved on to work in telecommunications and then bartending. I needed to find flexible jobs that allowed me to go to auditions and gigs. There came a point where my boss, who was also a friend, told me: “This is it, bro. You’re asking for so many days off. I don’t think you need this job anymore”.
4. What did your mom say when you told her that you're going to become a comedian?
Keith Pedro: I know a lot of other Filipino creatives were told by their moms that they should go into nursing. I told my mom that I was going to school to become a comedian. I kept going hard, in hopes that I would one day be the next Canadian comedian to hit it big like Jim Carrey or Russell Peters. Mind you, when I started comedy Jo Koy wasn’t where he is today. I’ve been doing comedy for 17 years, and it was midway through my career when Jo Koy started blowing up! He became an international star, and he proved that comedy can be a career. Because of him, my mom started to get off my back.
I've done a lot of cool stuff. I've worked with Kevin Hart and Russell Peters’ Roast Battle Canada. I was featured on primetime commercials and MTV. It wasn’t until I was on The Filipino Channel (TFC), that my mom finally got off my back. Mainly because my titas were telling her that they saw me on TFC!
5. When did you start to do more Filipino content?
Keith Pedro: When you grow up as an entertainer in Canada, you have to learn how to be very universal because there's not a lot of Filipinos in Canada. So you have to find a way to be universally funny. There's no real Filipino community, but it’s starting to develop in Canada.
The Filipino community in Canada does their own thing, but Toronto's now finally starting to get it going like other places where there are a lot of Filipinos like California, Houston, and Chicago. The Filipino community in California is honestly like Wakanda! Filipinos are flourishing in California! They’re owning and doing dope things.
Canada made me funny and taught me how to mold universal jokes. The Filipino-American audience in California taught me how to be more honest with my material because I finally felt that I could be myself!
6. What has been the biggest obstacle you had to face in your career?
Keith Pedro: In 2014, I was touring with other Filipino comedians. I got stopped at the border! I couldn’t cross the border (from Canada to the United States) for the last ten years because I had a run in with the law. In the last decade, I was watching my fellow Filipino comedians blow up! Meanwhile, I had to sit on the sidelines for a long time, but I think that was just God's plan. Thanks to my team, I finally have my paperwork cleared to get me across the border so that I can tour. This is my “Coming to America” party!
7. In moments of self-doubt, what do you do to build yourself back up?
Keith Pedro: This might sound super cliche, but, I just stay grateful. I just think of all the things I've been through: from being in trouble with the law, working in the kitchen, to performing in front of small crowds. It's my job to make people laugh!
When I get anxious or worried about what I can't control, I sit down to pray and do my meditation. I talk to God and He reassures me that I am going to be alright, and we are going to be good. Whenever I share good news with my mom, she is never surprised. She always tells me, “Yeah, I know I was praying. I lit a candle. I don't worry. You're welcome!”
I didn’t listen to anyone, not even my mom – there was a point where she was asking me if I was done with the jokes. There's so many times I could have quit. I had a kid early, and I couldn’t cross the border. Even during the pandemic, there was no work because live events were obsolete. There were so many things that told me to quit! I'm glad I didn't quit!
8. What are you currently working on now?
Keith Pedro: I'm currently working on this tour, which is the main thing. In October, I'm dropping a new comedy album, an audio comedy special. I also have a podcast called Tropical Punch that I am about to drop with one of the homies, Mike Roc. He's a DJ and I'm a comedian. We talk about the dynamic of both of our jobs while being Filipino and Canadian.
Right now, we have this national tour, and we're working on more dates internationally in 2025. I'm excited about showing the world who I am and hopefully we can blow it up more!
9. Tell us about the other comedians joining you along some stops on the tour.
Keith Pedro: I'm really excited about this tour! I could have just done the tour by myself, but I'm bringing some Filipino and non-Filipino comics like Chris Grullon and Jordan J., that have been killing it. Thank you to Justin Rivera, Jose Dynamite, Lanai, Nikki Supreme, Jackie Lin and Leah Eva for joining me at my different stops.
I have some of the best upcoming Filipino comics joining me, to name a few: Big Norm, Aivy Cordova and Mikey Perry.
Jennifer Redondo: We had the opportunity to sit with them so read on to learn a little more about Norm, Aivy and Mikey.
Norm Alconcel, aka “Big Norm”, is comedian, singer, and trained chef from Scarborough, Ontario in Canada, which is “like the Compton to Los Angeles or Queens to New York.” Alconcel grew up Seventh-Day Adventist, and at one point, he was considering studying theology to become a pastor. He sang in the church choir, which is where he picked up stage presence. Alconcel has been told that he’s the “Filipino Jaime Foxx” which he took as a big compliment because it was his dream to be an R&B artist like Sisqo from Dru Hill.
Instead, Alconcel became a professional chef. For over 15 years, he had the opportunity to work at La Mesa, a new age Filipino restaurant in Canada. He also worked as the traveling personal chef for soca music artist, Machel Montano. He also was at the forefront of legalizing cannabis in Canada. All the while, he kept pushing on with hosting and comedy.
Alconcel has been in the comedy world for 13 years. Alconcel shared that, “my comedy derives from growing up as an R&B and 90s hip hop head.” In his content, he makes references to his life and being Filipino. Stay tuned for more from Alconcel. He is working on his first comedy album and plans to do his own shows so that he can “spread the Gospel of Norm’s comedy and continue to charm the hearts of the people” he comes across.
Aivy Cordova (it’s pronounced “Ivy”) is a comedian from Hayward, California. She is also a mom of a teenager and works full time in the tech industry. Growing up, Cordova turned to writing and theater as her creative outlet. After college, Cordova was part of Bindlestiff Studio, the epicenter of Filipino American performing arts in San Francisco.
While performing, Cordova learned that she enjoyed writing scripts but didn’t like acting. Cordova shared that, “I felt like my acting skills were not doing the writers’ scripts and vision justice”. After taking Kevin Camia’s stand-up comedy workshop at Bindlestiff, Cordova discovered that comedy is something that she could be good at.
During her second year in stand-up, Cordova got pregnant so her son (now 16 years old) became her priority, and she left comedy for 8 years. As her son got older, Cordova gradually made her way back to comedy, starting with improv at Upright Citizens Brigade Sunset in Los Angeles in 2017 before returning to stand-up in the Bay Area. She now performs regularly at Cobb’s, Improv, and Punch Line San Francisco and Sacramento, as well as venues throughout the country. She’s opened for Rex Navarrete, performed at SF Sketchfest and currently tours with Keith Pedro.
She’s different and she’s “hopeful that more people will start feeling hopeful as well – Hey, she doesn't have rhythm either and she’s not a singer. I can't do any of that, but I am funny and I am willing to work. Maybe people can see that they have other options. This is a potential career for somebody.”
Mikey Perry was born in Virginia Beach. After four years in the U.S. Marines, Perry settled in San Diego. At the age of 27, he got into comedy through the encouragement of his co-worker who signed him up for an open mic. Since then, Perry has been grinding in the comedy world. Perry shared that the Marines “helped me be mentally strong to be able to do comedy because it forced me do something I was passionate about, and here I am seven years later”.
For the last couple of years, Perry has been working at Mic Drop Comedy Club. When Perry started doing comedy, he didn’t see much Filipino representation. That was his driving force to start Ube World, a Filipino comedy experience where 21+ years olds come together to see Filipino talent, including comedians, singers, rappers, and dancers. They also serve Filipino food and drinks on the menu at Ube World. Perry created a signature drink called “puntagina mule” which is his take of a Moscow mule. Ube World started two years ago, and now takes place in San Diego every other month. Be sure to check it out if you’re in the area!
10. Where can people reach you all?
Keith Pedro: You can go to my website, hit me up at @keithpedro on Instagram and TikTok. Instagram is probably the most proactive app right now. You can also subscribe to my YouTube channel. You can find the homies on Instagram: @aivycordova , @mikeytotheworld , @bignormalconcel.
Written by Jennifer Redondo
Co-Founder and Co-Author of In Her Purpose
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